I feel for Matt & Ben, they must have been at their wits end with how their friendship has been the selling point of the promotion of The Rip. Whoring themselves out, again, cheapening their relationship, again, when questions could have been more focused on their vision of the craft of filmmaking, and so on. Like, at the end of the day, their relationship is a private matter? I don't think this way of promoting movies, and I blame Netflix here, is a good way to get them to make more movies together. And as you said, it was less intense during Air, but there was the Bennifer thing at the same time... Anyway, it is frustrating to watch from the outside, so I can't imagine what it's like for them.
Hi anon, yes, exactly! Like, this whole being celebrity friends thing is such a tough balancing act. On the one hand, they are one of the most important people in each other's lives. And not only would it feel awful to have to hide or downplay that to avoid the attention, but there is also a joy to be found in openly celebrating this other person and how much they mean to you. But it must feel equally awful to see this most precious thing in your life treated like a commodity being fed to the masses for profit. It's like Matt said:
I don’t want to be his friend in public [...] It’s way too important a friendship for that, and it goes so beyond this career or anything. You know, it’s a significant part of my life and not for public consumption in that way.”
— Matt Damon’s interview for GQ (September 2021).
They have dealt with this conundrum since they exploded onto the scene. And their previous response was to avoid the circus altogether and just maintain their friendship privately. But in their bid to protect their personal relationship, they sacrificed their creative partnership. And for two guys whose shared passion for acting is at the bedrock of their entire lives together and apart, being cut off from experiencing the joy of creating together must have felt heartbreaking.
That's why the Get Back story never fails to move me (and why seeing it get brought up ad nauseam during this press tour, being slowly chipped away until it becomes just another trifle anecdote, made me incredibly sad). Another example is the way people react to the shared bank account thing, treating it like a novelty and making them feel self-conscious about it. It's so tricky because it does feel like something special. Two people trusting and loving each other enough to tie their fates and resources together is something special. It shouldn't be, it should feel normal, but it is. People care and are fascinated by their relationship because there's something at the core of it that feels profoundly precious and beautiful. The kind of unconditional love they have for each other is something we all crave in our own lives.
So I'm looking at them too. I'm consuming them too. In an ideal world, this consumption does not have to be a bad thing; it could remain mutuallistic. Their relationship is inarguably one of the biggest selling points of the movie. They knew this going in; they actively played with people's preconceptions during the film; and now they (and hopefully the rest of the crew) will profit from it. If all of this is kept sane and consensual, it's great for everyone involved. We're entertained, and they get to make a living doing what they love with the people they love. But there is a point after which things can tip from joint sharing to invasive exploitation. Hence the balancing act.
I believe they've never been better equipped to deal with these pressures than they are now. That they're too mature and cognizant of the preciousness of what they have together to ever let anything else come between them. I can only hope that this experience will not put them off collaborating in the near future. Not just because of my selfish interest in it, but because I genuinely feel like the joy they derive from creating together is too meaningful to be wasted.
